Lie detector: Villas Boas lied about Sporting president accusations | OneFootball

André Villas-Boas stated after the match between Sporting and Porto that “the President of Sporting has already called the president of the Federation, João Capela, Nuno Almeida, (…) a thief,” a statement that once again fueled the exchange of criticisms between officials of the two clubs.

However, the ‘Polígrafo’ conducted a fact-check and concluded that the statements are ‘false’. Among the names mentioned is João Capela, a top-tier referee from 2005/06 to 2018/19. One of the most notable matches of his career was the derby between Benfica and Sporting in the 26th round of the 2012/13 season, a game that generated several criticisms from the Alvalade club. At that time, Frederico Varandas was still part of the Sporting structure as a doctor.

Another name mentioned was Nuno Almeida, who refereed in the top tier of Portuguese football for several years. Although there is no particularly controversial history with Sporting, one of the last matches he officiated for the Lions—precisely a Sporting vs. Porto match in December 2023—was marked by protests from the Alvalade team, who complained about two disallowed goals.

Regarding the “president of the Federation” mentioned, it appears that Villas-Boas was referring to Pedro Proença, the current head of the FPF. However, there is no public statement from Frederico Varandas in which he called Pedro Proença, João Capela, or Nuno Almeida a ‘thief’.

The fact-checking organization also contacted the Dragons to clarify which specific statements André Villas-Boas was referring to, but the blue and whites did not provide further details.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.